Associate Professor Ferry Slik

My research focuses on trying to understand spatial and temporal patterns in plant distributions. One of my main research themes is how global change will affect plant communities and vegetation patterns of the future, but I also study contemporary plant distributions to get a better understanding of their past.

Most of the research is focused on tropical Asia, one of the fastest developing and changing tropical regions in the world. Its once continuous tropical forests are now fragmented and mostly degraded. I hope to find ways to maintain or restore the functions of tropical Asia’s natural ecosystems.